In the past several years, much progress has been made in understanding, diagnosing and treating psychological issues that develop the first year after childbirth, commonly referred to as 'postpartum depression.' Even the condition's name has been revisited.

"There is no specific diagnosis called 'postpartum depression'," says Leslie McKeough, a Leesburg therapist specializing in perinatal and postpartum issues. "That term is a general umbrella that medical professionals use to describe a group of mental illnesses experienced after the birth of a child - and it's the label we use for insurance purposes."

One local Northern Virginia man 's fight against breast cancer.

It didn’t take long for Jim Atkins to fall in love with his wife Cheryl. As a young girl, her parents nicknamed her "The Cherry Blossom" because this Georgia girl was happy, radiant, cheerful and always smiling, just like a cherry blossom. Jim still tenderly recalls her long, blonde beautiful hair and how he convinced her to marry him.

One I Am Modern contributor on getting her life back

I am an “indoors” person, preferring air conditioning to the local humidity. I like to read, needlepoint and write. I thought I was the least likely person to contract Lyme disease. Yet, it happened to me.

My diagnosis came at age 46 after six years of chronic pain, varying, migrating symptoms, 21 physicians, many diagnoses and a tenacious uncle who demanded proper testing for Lyme. In less than a year’s time I deteriorated from walking three miles a day to getting out of bed in the morning suffering excruciating pain, saying to my husband, “I can’t go through another day feeling this much pain.”

As we dig deeper into summer of 2010, here are a few health and safety tips to keep in mind from Board Certified Pediatrician Dr. Joseph Skoloff when planning vacations and enjoying the summer months with your family.

“Here Comes the Sun”
While everyone enjoys a warm, sunny, summer day, the sunshine can present a real danger to the skin.   UVA and UVB rays can penetrate the skin and cause permanent damage to the DNA molecules of the skin.  While many – particularly the younger generation – find an instant satisfaction from a glowing suntan, the long term effects of the tan will remain for the rest of the person’s life.  

Summer is the perfect opportunity to get outside more and take that first step towards achieving optimal health. By implementing just a few simple practices, we can work towards living an overall healthier existence. Dr. Wayne Andersen founder of Take Shape for Life (www.tsfl.com) has provided the following tips:  

The issue of hydration and athletes is a serious issue.  Researchers find it important enough to take sweat samples from hot, stinky soccer players to measure the contents of their sweat.  The purpose of such studies is to measure what is lost in sweat and then devise a method for best replenishing the lost elements.

Hydration should be a concern in every athletic and fitness endeavor, but with summer underway, hydrating our athletes becomes increasingly important..

After reviewing several research articles and seeking the help of a colleague, Alex Rosenzweig a former trainer to the Chicago Bears, I have compiled guidelines concerning female teenage athletes and their hydration requirements.

Dehydration, including acute levels, will affect the athlete physiologically, mechanically, and mentally. (D.A. Judelson, 2007)  The symptoms of dehydration are not as obvious or dramatic as we may believe.

Professional makeup artist Christopher Drummond scoured the runways during Spring/Summer New York Fashion Week this past September to come up with makeup trends that would complement the collections. He then took those trends and incorporated them into his line in a realistic, workable way so the everyday woman could look fashion forward, but not over-the-top.

The top trends that Christopher predicated for this season were pastels, corals and a focus on the eyes.

IAM asked Dr. Belilovsky about his take on the study published this week in the Journal Pediatrics linking pesticide exposure in children to a diagnosis of ADHD. Here is what he told us:

Parents shouldn’t necessarily react hysterically to the recent study linking ADHD and pesticides.  One major confounder in this study is the known tendency of ADHD children for self-stimulating behaviors, such as chewing non-food objects.  It is possible that some of the link is due to larger exposure of ADHD sufferers to possibly contaminated dirt or contaminated objects that children without ADHD would not have exposed themselves to.